Dorm Chats

Its a bit like living in a dorm, being assigned a room in the convent retreat center. Women are kindly housed on the main floor while the men are upstairs. My room is on the side of the building overlooking the lake. The rooms are simple. A bed. A dresser. A desk. A small clothes bar, and a rocking chair.


The daily schedule is not overwhelming, but definitely full. Breakfast at 8, morning devotions together, class begins at 9 - that kind of thing. Morning sessions blend into lunch which blends into the afternoon sessions blending into dinner followed by evening classes and a night time devotion. There is much to do.


By the time we are free from our commitments, it is already late. Reading and undone assignments preclude socializing too much although many have worked ahead and take walks into town or down by the lake. I am stuck in my room playing catch up. I hear the women as they return full of chatter and happiness. We gab as they pass my door and sometimes the conversations are long. Soon I find my room full of people discussing all sorts of imaginable topics, comparing, assessing, exploring.

The good sisters have instructed us to spray our window screens with unscented hairspray to keep the gnats out, and we dutifully have done so. The breeze off the lake is refreshing. We finally end our conversation, tearing ourselves away, tired and in need of sleep. Showers spray and doors close.

One last whispered conversation with the lady across the hall draws me into her room where we are slowly rejoined by the rest clad in their pj's. We chat a bit longer, then I excuse myself and head to my room. What on earth??? The walls are swarming with the little black gnats. Apparently the hairspray wore off when we weren't looking. Another person discovers her entire bed is littered with the pesky things. She opts for a room NOT on the lake side and moves her stuff. My room is less infected, and I turn off the room light. The bugs exit towards the street light outside.

I have no time to think about them again. My head hits the pillow and I am asleep. I am not used to staying up indulging in gab fests. As much fun as it is, there are other things I need my energy for. It was nice though to step back to an earlier stage of life for a few minutes. Just so long as I don't make a habit of it. Pun intended.









staying up late